Concepts
Social engineering
In Turkish: Sosyal mühendislik
Tricking people, not computers: using trust, urgency or fear to get someone to hand over a code, a password or money.
The attacker pretends to be a bank officer, a courier, a colleague or even a relative, and builds pressure: your account is at risk, a parcel is stuck, act now. The technique works because it targets how we react, not a flaw in a device.
The reliable defence is a pause. Stop, step away from the conversation, and verify through a channel you find yourself, such as the number on your card.
What to do
- Treat urgency and secrecy as warning signs.
- Hang up and call back on a number you find yourself.
- Agree on a family code word for emergency requests for money.
Related terms
Learn it in the Academy
Try it
Free tools that put this to use.
- Message checker
Paste a suspicious text, WhatsApp message or email. We tell you whether it looks like a scam and what to do.